Premium
Quality of life outcomes associated with treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) facial lipoatrophy
Author(s) -
Kraus Christi.,
Chapman Lance W.,
Korta Dorota Z.,
Zachary Christopher B.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
international journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-4632
pISSN - 0011-9059
DOI - 10.1111/ijd.13374
Subject(s) - medicine , quality of life (healthcare) , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , antiretroviral therapy , patient satisfaction , surgery , viral load , immunology , nursing
Summary Facial lipoatrophy ( FLA ), characterized by a decrease in facial volume, has a high prevalence in patients with human immunodeficiency virus ( HIV ) infection treated with long‐term highly active antiretroviral therapy ( HAART ). The social stigmatization that results from such changes in facial appearance has led some HIV patients to discontinue HAART . The use of fillers is one method of restoring facial volume. A critical outcome of treatment concerns the patient's quality of life (QoL). Although many studies have assessed patient satisfaction, as well as the social and psychological outcomes associated with the correction of HIV FLA , fewer studies have assessed QoL. We reviewed treatment options for HIV FLA with a specific focus on QoL outcomes. Our analysis revealed that the following treatments were associated with improvements in QoL: poly‐ l ‐lactic acid; calcium hydroxylapatite; hyaluronic acid; polyacrylamide gel; polyalkylamide gel; polymethylmethacrylate; silicone oil; and autologous fat transfer. The treatment of HIV FLA with these agents appears to improve QoL as assessed by various QoL instruments. Additional studies are required to identify a unifying QoL instrument to effectively assess longitudinal QoL outcomes and to compare treatment modalities.